Essay Contest sponsored by
Global Alliance for Preserving the History of WWII in Asia
Iris Chang Memorial Fund

The purpose of the essay contest is to raise the awareness of the importance of the remembrance
of history. The essay will be in line with Iris Chang’s spirit and passion in seeking the truth and
justice and defending human rights.

The essay contest will be held annually by announcing a specific topic each year. The topic will
be announced publicly on March 28, Iris Chang’s birthday, each year. The deadline of the
submission will be July 31.

Anyone can submit an essay but the language of the text must be English only and the essay
should be no more than 2,500 words.

The three best essays will be selected for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd prizes among the participants. The
essays will be judged by a panel of established writers.

The award for the 1st prize is $1,000, the 2nd $500 and the 3rd $250, in addition, several honorable
mentions will be awarded with $50 each. The day for the announcement of the award will be
tentatively set at November 9, a memorial day for Iris’ passing away.

If no essay was up to the standard as the 1st place as judged by the panel on any particular year,
then the 1st award will not be awarded for that year.

The essays submitted to the contest committee will not be returned and will be part of the
property of Global Alliance-Iris Chang Memorial Fund.

The award essays will be published, if possible and when appropriate, through Global Alliance,
its affiliates and/or other educational or media organizations.

The topic for the 2006 Iris Chang Memorial Essay Contest is on the theme of “How has Iris
Chang’s book, The Rape of Nanking: the Forgotten Holocaust of WWII, affected my life and
thinking?” Please give your reflections of how the book affected your life. Iris had traveled
through the country on her book tours and gave hundreds of public speeches, and radio and TV
interviews. She personally met thousands of people during the tours and influenced many
readers and viewers. We would like to see the influence and impact of her work on your life and
thinking. What do Iris Chang’s life and her book mean to you?

Iris Chang was born in Princeton, N.J. on March 28, 1968 to Chinese immigrant parents, both
university professors. Raised in Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, she earned a bachelor degree in
journalism from University of Illinois and a master degree in writing from Johns Hopkins
University. Iris was briefly working as a news reporter at The Associated Press and Chicago
Tribune before she became a full-time freelance writer.

In her short yet brilliant writing career, she published three books. Her most critically acclaimed
book The Rape of Nanking: the Forgotten Holocaust of World War II, published in 1997, the
60th anniversary of the massacre, examines one of the most tragic chapters of World War II: the
slaughter, gang rape and torture of hundreds of thousands of Chinese civilians by Japanese
soldiers in the former capital of China. She found numerous rare documents during her research.
The discovery of John Rabe’s diary was one of her most important contributions to this part of
the history. “The Rape of Nanking”-the first full-length English language narrative of the
atrocity to reach a wide audience-remained on the New York Times bestseller list for several
months, and has been translated into several languages and has become an international
bestseller as well. Columnist, George Will, of Washington Post, wrote of Chang as “Something
beautiful, an act of justice, is occurring in America today…..Because of Chang’s book, the
second rape of Nanking is ending.”

Chang's first book, “Thread of the Silkworm,” tells the ironic story of Dr. Tsien Hsue-shen, the
brilliant Chinese-born scientist, who helped pioneer the American space age, was mysteriously
accused of being a Communist and was deported to China, where he became the father of the
Chinese missile programs.

Her last book, “The Chinese in America: A Narrative History,” focuses on Chinese immigrants
and their descendents in the United States -- their sacrifices, their achievements and their
contributions to the fabric of American culture, an epic journey spanning more than 150 years.
Historian Stephen Ambrose said of Chang: “She may be the best young historian we've got,
because she understands that to communicate history you've got to tell the story in an interesting
way.”

Chang gave hundreds of public speeches and radio and TV interviews to advocate her belief.
She was always an unflinching fighter for justice and truth and a strong supporter for human
rights. In her most celebrated book, “The Rape of Nanking,” she quoted George Santayana’s
immortal words: Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. She
passionately believed that the world could move forward only through preserving the truth of
history and learning the mistakes of the past.

Chang, a disciplined student of history, was also a true believer in education and devoted
countless hours from her busy schedule to personally coach and mentor many of her young
followers in the U.S. and abroad.

She died on November 9, 2004 leaving behind unfinished dreams: to make an epic movie of “The Rape of Nanking” and create an oral history project of recording victims and survivors of
Sino-Japanese war before their voices disappear forever.

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